Corruption Threatens Democracy in Egypt and in the United States

We need to be faithful and responsible citizens- grateful for our right to vote

Egyptians and Americans have a common goal--the flourishing of democracy and freedom in their respective lands. Without fair elections, we are not able to elect our leaders in the true sense of the word. Nor are we able to hold our leaders accountable or replace them through peaceful means. This is a real concern for mature democracies as well as emerging and fledgling democracies.

P>KNOXVILLE, TN (Catholic Online) - Now that the long awaited elections have begun, perhaps the greatest question in a post-Mubarak Egypt is whether or not we are witnessing a true Arab Spring. Based on what is happening so far, it looks like winter may be setting in. This is especially true for the Coptic Christian community in Egypt. It seems that their fears are being realized as the election process continues to unfold.

The election process, which began in late November, is to take place in three stages over a period of six weeks and will be divided among 27 provinces. The first stage will fill the lower parliamentary seats. The second stage will fill the upper seats. Then Egyptians will vote for their next president. In addition, these stages will be followed by a run-off election in each of the provinces. Consequently, the whole process will run into January 2012.

The clear winner thus far is the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party. This is disturbing, especially for the Copts, because the provinces where voting has occurred thus far are more moderate. Some are trying to portray the Muslim Brotherhood as moderate; however, the Brotherhood wants to expand Islamic law throughout the Middle East and, presumably, beyond. They were founded in the early 1900's in response to the growing power and influence of the West, but they were outlawed under ousted President Mubarak. Osama bin Laden was supposedly inspired by the Muslim Brotherhood, and the new leader of al-Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahri, is a former member.

Moreover, it appears that the elections have been corrupted. According to Jihad Watch, the Muslim Brotherhood has been accused of trying to rig the election by handing out money and food at polling stations to those who vote in accordance with the Brotherhood's agenda. In spite of voting laws against campaigning inside or near polling stations, witnesses have said that "some Brotherhood groups were allowed to set up tables with laptop computers in order to show 'people how to vote.'" It was also reported that the Election Commission has withheld the results from several polling stations because of violations.

Interestingly, the very ones accused of corruption and undermining the elections have publicly declared that they will not tolerate cheating, and that democracy is alive and well in Egypt. The leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohammed Badei, said, "We will take to the streets if there is any cheating in the elections or manipulation of the constitution." And Essam El Erian, the Vice President of the Freedom and Justice Party, has assured the world that "[Egypt is] a real democracy, and we can build our country."

If the Muslim Brotherhood, or some other group of Islamists, gains substantial power in Egypt, many in the Coptic Christian community fear it "will guarantee increased persecution against them or at a minimum, entrench their second-hand status in the country." This is a very real concern, but there is another concern too. If any group is allowed to gain power through the corruption of the election process, it will essentially kill the chance for democracy to take hold in Egypt and, along with it, freedom and the hope of an Arab Spring.

The Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church gives us an idea why such corruption would be so devastating. Paragraph 406 states that "The Church values the democratic system inasmuch as it ensures the participation of citizens in making political choices, guarantees to the governed the possibility both of electing and holding accountable those who govern them, and of replacing them through peaceful means when appropriate."

In addition, paragraph 411 states that political corruption is one of the most serious kind of deformities of the democratic system. The Compendium refers to political corruption as a betrayal of the moral principles and norms of social justice, as it radically distorts the correct functioning of the state and creates a growing distrust of public institutions, politics and its representatives.

For many of us, there is probably no other activity more representative of democracy than voting and the election process. Yet, without fair elections, we are not able to elect our leaders in the true sense of the word. Nor are we able to hold our leaders accountable or replace them through peaceful means. Fair elections are absolutely fundamental to democracy. Therefore, the corruption of the election process is a serious betrayal which threatens democracy at its core.

It should be obvious that the same rules apply in mature democracies as much as they do in emerging and fledgling democracies. We also have an election coming up in 2012, and we need to be mindful of corruption in the United States just as much as they do in Egypt. This is especially true since the election process in the United States has experienced growing corruption in recent years.

Ever since Al Gore dragged out the 2000 presidential election as teams of lawyers descended on Florida and split hairs over hanging chads, dimpled chads, pregnant chads, and demanded multiple recounts, our election process has become visibly corrupt. The courts were even dragged into the election, and it eventually went all the way to the Supreme Court. Gore's antics and his subsequent bitterness turned our election process into a circus and left it weakened.

We are also reminded of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) and their involvement in voter fraud during the 2008 election, which resulted in an FBI investigation. There have also been numerous convictions of ACORN employees. The first prosecution of ACORN itself occurred this past August in Nevada. The judge said, "To me this is reprehensible. This is the kind of thing you see in some banana republic, Uruguay or someplace, not in the United States."

Therefore, as the 2012 election gears up, let us remember that we have what most people in the world want. People fought and died for the freedom we are blessed with. It was forged in the blood and sweat of our ancestors. We did not have to struggle for it; we were born into it. It was a pure gift, but we are responsible to maintain it and pass it on to the next generation. And the world needs to see that freedom works, that the struggle is worth the effort and the risk.

In a certain respect, then, Egyptians and Americans have a common goal--the flourishing of democracy and freedom in their respective lands. This is especially true for Christians. Islamic fundamentalism is a grave threat to Christians in Egypt, while secularism threatens religious freedom in the United States. Thus, we watch as the Arab Spring hangs in the balance for Muslim and Christian alike. But we are also mindful of what may turn out to be one of the most important elections in our own nation's history.
 
 
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Michael Terheyden was born into a Catholic family, but that is not why he is a Catholic. He is a Catholic because he believes that truth is real, that it is beautiful and good, and that the fullness of truth is in the Catholic Church. However, he knows that God's grace operating throughout his life is the main reason he is a Catholic. He is greatly blessed to share his faith and his life with his beautiful wife, Dorothy. They have four grown children and three grandchildren.

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